Carrion Leaves Obama Admin, Heads To Private Sector

Former Bronx BP Adolfo Carrion is leaving the Obama administration, clearing the way for his potential return to electoral politics.

In an email to friends and colleagues today, Carrion announced he’ll depart his current HUD post on Feb. 10 to launch Metro Futures LLC, which he described as “an entity that will be dedicated toadvancing investment in infrastructure, housing, and smart metropolitan growth.” He also said he’ll be continuing his “political activism” and helping President Obama’s re-election bid.

Carrion was raising campaign cash for a potential run in 2009 for NYC mayor, but then dropped down to the comptroller’s race to avoid a head-on collision with then-NYC Comptroller Bill Thompson.

At the time, Carrion wanted to be the city’s first Latino mayor, and Thompson was gunning to be the second black mayor since David Dinkins. Having both of them on the ballot would have diluted the minority vote and raised racial tension between two powerful voting blocs.

As it turned out, Thompson easily secured the Democratic nod after easily defeated then-NYC Councilman (now Senator) Tony Avella in the primary. He went on to lose a closer-than-expected race to Mayor Bloomberg, who forced a term limits extension through the Council so he could seek four more years in office.

Carrion ended up not running for comptroller, opting instead to become director of the newly created White House Office of Urban Affairs with the White House Domestic Policy Council. In May 2010, the president subsequently named him regional director for HUD’s New York and New Jersey Regional Office.

In December, Carrion was fined $10,000 by NYC’s Conflicts of Interest Board for getting an architect who had benefited from his actions as borough president to work on a personal project for him. This took place back in 2006-07, and was widely viewed as the reason Carrion abruptly had a change of heart about deparing NYC politics for D.C. His federal background check and security clearance took quite a while, if I remember correctly.

That $10,000 is just a fraction of the more than $1 million Carrion still has in his NYC campaign committee. Carrion reportedly is now reconsidering a run for comptroller in 2013.

According to a Bronx Democratic source, the fundraising troubles of the current comptroller, John Liu, may have hastened Carrion’s departure from the public payroll. He could not remain a federal employee and also raise campaign cash.